About Me

Saturday, January 6, 2018

This is a re-print of a very short article I wrote for an Australian magazine about fourteen years ago. I tend to cringe when I re-read my work from the past, but there may still be something in the words....

The 15' 2-1/2" Cruising Dinghy referred to in the text. This photo should convince skeptics that a Lug-Sail can set well and take a boat to windward efficiently.

When it comes to boatbuilding, dreams
don’t always come true. Those of us who are afflicted with this boat addiction
know the cycle – thinking about one boat leads to thoughts about another and so
on to eternity. The dreams are necessary, because without them nothing would
ever get done; however they need to be kept under control.

Mike Rowe and his friend Ian were both dreamers. However as youth gave
way to middle age, the dreams had become more realistic – the size and
complexity of their dreamboats had reduced in inverse proportion to their
experience.

As they relaxed in the cockpit of Mike’s little cat-yawl, the
conversation had turned to this very subject…

“Why is it,” said Mike, “that there are so few decent cruising dinghies
on the market?”

“Because people automatically assume that if you are going to sleep
aboard a boat, you need a cabin,” answered Ian. “Look at the boom in production
trailerable yachts during the seventies and eighties – everybody wanted the convenience
of a trailer boat with the accommodations of an H28. But what they got was a
very small cabin boat which was difficult to launch and retrieve, heavy to tow,
too big to store in a garage and took too long to rig and unrig. No wonder the
bubble burst!”

Mike stared thoughtfully at the wake before answering. He was
remembering that some of his best boating experiences had taken place in a 15-½
foot cruising dinghy, sleeping on the floorboards under a makeshift boom-tent.
But he was also thinking about sand, clutter, wet clothes and mosquitoes.

“You’re right, Ian, but to be fair, lots of people did lots of sailing
in those trailer-sailers. To make dinghy cruising successful one has to be
better organised than we have ever been.” was his response, “Let’s take a look
at what is required.”

They talked well into the evening, enjoying the easy companionship
which came from common interests and a friendship which dated from high school.
It would take too much space to record the entire conversation, but a number of
points kept cropping up: -

·Simple projects are more likely to be finished than
those which are large and complicated;

·Cabins don’t get used as much as cockpits, so we
should think twice before trading cockpit space for a cabin;

·There are very few open boats on the market which
lend themselves to daysailing and overnighting. This is especially the case if
spirited sailing performance is a high priority;

The irony of this line of
conversation was that it took place in the cabin of a particularly comfortable
and capable keelboat, measuring only 15-½ ft LOA. She was relatively light, had
been simple to build at home, carried not one inch of standing rigging, and got
to windward better than most. This sparkling performance was due to brilliant
design on the part of a designer who was blessed with an open mind. His deep
understanding of hydrodynamics allowed him to wring good performance from his
designs – even (especially) those with rectangular hull sections. He had been
schooled by such greats as Lindsay Lord, L. Francis Herreshoff, and Howard
Chapelle. Although known for his rectangular boats, about ninety percent of his
published work was classic and conventional.

In the following week, Mike continued working on a group of three boats
in his workshop. All were capable open boats ranging in size from 12ft to 18ft
length-over-all; two were cruising dinghies of the very type which he had been
discussing with his friend. He hoped that this situation was an indication that
the wheel was turning a full circle.

These days, as always, building a small boat is a fine investment of
your time. Whether it be a sailingboat, a powerboat, a beautiful rowing craft
or a canoe, the result will be worth the effort. But effort and application are
required – dreams are only the first bit. Dreams, like so many other things,
can be addictive. Pick a simple project and start!